Crew’s Log…
Cycling Date: Tuesday 06-October-15
Mileage: 42 miles
Climbing: 2900’
Weather: Another beautiful day. Crystal clear skies and low 40s to start. A few clouds and mid 60s to end. Winds out of the north kicked up towards the end of the day.
Highlights of the day:
Today we took the hill repeats and amped them up a bit. Right out of gate, the riders warmed up climbing the first 3 miles with a few pitches well into the double digits. A brief respite down hill took us across the Androscoggin River, into Lewiston and through Bates College. Then it was more hills, a few horse farms, and the SAG stop at the Roaring Brook Nursery. It was closed but we still had a chance to commune with the chickens, goats, and pumpkins.
The second half of the route treated us to more hills and probably the longest climb of the day. The cue sheet had the word “hill” in bold. For some reason, our notes from last year said to remove that bold. Riding those hills this year, I think it should be noted as “HILLS!!” While the total number of feet climbed today was a topic of discussion as to whose total we should believe, I think it is safe to say that we climbed nearly 3000’ in 42 miles. That is a goodly amount of climbing in short steep increments.
We ended the day at a local establishment called “The Liberal Cup,” a local brew pub on the Kennebec River. Large plates of pub fare were polished off in quick fashion. Some riders added poutine (french fries with cheese curds & gravy) as an appetizer. I’m not sure where they put it all! Riders climbed back into the van for the ride “home” and commented how tired they were & how late it felt… It was 7:00pm. I think everyone worked hard today and will not have any trouble getting in a good night’s sleep